
Member Reviews

I found this book to be very fresh and interesting based on its narrative style and its focus on the victims’ voices rather than the serial killers. In this book, we follow Rachel who has been kept in captivity for 5 years by a serial killer—we also get glimpses into his past victims, this current girlfriend, and daughter’s perspectives. This books says something quite poignant about what happens to women who are abused or killed and makes an important note that it can be anyone doing the abusing .

The Quiet Tenant by Clemence Michallon
Oh how I devoured this book! The Quiet Tenant was unlike anything I've read. The author makes you feel totally on edge while reading this because what's going to happen next? Did I even breathe while reading this?! I am definitely looking forward to reading more from Clemence Michallon in the future!

Thank you to Netgalley and Knopf Publishing Group for the e-arc of this book. I really enjoyed the different perspectives that we were given in this book- three different women who are part of a man's life, including the woman he has kept in a shed for several years. The story definitely kept me hooked and wanting to pick up the story- just when you think things will be solved another wrench is thrown in. The only part I wasn't sure of were certain details of the ending, which I don't want to spoil for goodreads. But I didn't think the connection between the two women needed to happen at the end. It felt awkward and too "wrapped up nicely" for the rest of the story. Overall 4.5 stars.

Wow! What a debut novel! This book sucked me in from the very first paragraph and I never looked back. It was a 24 hour read for me. It has an unconventional structure which I love in books. It’s written from a second person POV so it takes a bit to get used to that but I liked that it was different. It’s hard to say a lot about the plot/characters because I don’t want to give anything away. I felt all the feelings with this one…nervous, sad, angry, confused, hopeful. You need to just trust me and read this book when you are ready for a complex, nail biting thriller.
Read if you like:
▫️dark, complex thrillers
▫️interesting structure
▫️true crime

Man was this freaking good!!!! When I find a gem like this I feel I get more excited than most since this genre is a hit or miss with me.
The execution of this book was so well done and felt unique compared to others I've read. It's a novel about a serial killer who has his whole town convinced he's the kindest soul. The catch is that it's told through the eyes of his victims with focus on the daughter's and current captive's POV.
The writing style is immersive and hard to turn away from. It portrays captivity and the fight to stay alive against the backdrop of the human psyche. I was hooked as Michallon shows the perspectives each character has towards the killer's different versions, from romantic interest to loving daughter to captor. As each character moves through the plot we slowly start to see the tipping point. It flows so darn well. Sometimes repetitive in the dialogue but not a hindrance. More of an emphasis on feeling.UI

4⭐
Genre ~ psychological thriller
Publication date ~ June 20, 2023
Page Count ~ 304
Audio length ~ 10 hours 44 minutes
Narrators ~ Gilli Messer, Elena Rey, Valerie Rose Lohman, Amber Battaglia, Reba Buhr, Jess Nahikian, Aure Nash, Milly Sanders, Sara Sheckells, Yu-Li Alice Shen
POV ~ 1st, 2nd & 3rd
Featuring ~ debut, serial killer, dark, se*ual abuse
Quite the interesting chapter titles (I didn't realize there were so many different ones until I started typing them up and since I already put in all the work I figured I'd leave it for you to see, so read them if you want, or don't, I won't ever know): The woman in the shed ~ The woman in the shed, when she was still a girl ~ The woman in transit ~ The woman in the house ~ Number one ~ Number two ~ Number three ~ The woman-before the house, before the shed ~ Number four ~ The woman in danger ~ The Woman, a long time ago ~ The woman without a number ~ The woman on the move ~ The woman in the house, so very close to a girl ~ Number five ~ The woman in the house, always in the house ~ Number seven ~ The woman, descending ~ The woman under the house ~ Number eight ~ Number nine ~ The woman in the truck ~ The woman on the move ~ The woman, almost there ~ The woman, running ~ The woman at the police station ~ The woman with a name
The woman... chapters are all told in the 2nd person. This might be my first experience with this and I'm still thinking about if I liked it or not.
Emily owns the local restaurant and has her eyes on Aiden. We, the readers, are screaming at her NO, since we know what this evil man is capable of, but do you think she listens to us, nope.
We hear from Cecilia, Aiden's 13 year old daughter, which showed how controlling he is with her.
Overall, this was a pretty good debut. My pulse was pounding a few times just like the description said it would.
I was able to listen to an audio copy as well.
Narration notes:
Holy narrators batman, however I couldn't really tell the difference between most of them except for the one that did Cecilia, so if they weren't all listed I might not have ever known.

4.5
Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for providing an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
I devoured this book in 2 sittings. This book was unputdownable. I loved the tension and the eerie vibes and how well-written it was.
I was enjoying everything from the very first page till the end. I loved how the author chose to share the POVs of the women around the killer; the girl he kidnapped, his 13 years old daughter, his girlfriend, and not only that but we got POVs of those women he killed.
I loved how the chapters were short and how the sentences kept me invested and terrified of what might happen. I enjoyed the POV of Rachel, the girl he locked up in his shed, more than the other povs and i felt so sorry for her and i got so emotional because of what she is suffering.
The POV of his daughter ,Cecilia, sometimes broke me how she has no idea how her father is a monster. Emily's POV ,his girlfriend, is what made me soooo madddd because of how fool she was, and i guess that's the point. Monsters will manipulate you and get you fooled.
Overall, this was a clever premise, and an amazing well-written novel, and I will be looking forward to any book Clémence Michallon publishes cause she became one of my favorite authors now.

The Quiet Tenant is possibly the best book I've read all year. I was hooked from the beginning to the end because I needed to know how this book would end. The second half of this book had my heart pounding. This book was written so well and was just amazing overall.

What a ride this book was. Once I started it I could not stop reading or thinking about it. I still cannot stop thinking about it. It was so well written and it invoked such emotions while I was reading it.

This is certainly a book that I will be recommending to everyone that will listen to me!
A story of a serial killer told from various perspectives: his girlfriend, his daughter, and chillingly … one of his victims who was spared.

This has been one of the best books I’ve read this year so far! It was so good, I read it twice! I read it digitally and then listened on audio within just a few weeks. I rarely re-read so to read a book twice in such a short period of time is high praise from me! After I started this book, I really did not want to put it down. I stayed up until 1am one night to finish it because I had to know what happened. The pacing was excellent and the characters were realistic. I thought the chapter titling and the short chapters from other POVs interspersed between the chapters from the main three character POVs were both very original and creative devices.
This book has so many five-star reviews and this is another one! If you like mysteries and thrillers, then you will probably like this book. I will absolutely read anything else Clémence Michallon writes in the future!

This was not for me. It was not what I expected it to be. No mystery or thriller aspect for it at all.
I'm sorry but I did not finish this one.
Thank you #NetGalley for this ARC.

The Quiet Tenant was dark and twisted and I loved every minute of it. I love how it was told from the different perspectives. Such a bingeable read and I can't wait to see what this author comes out with next.

It's always hard to know what secrets people hide. For Aidan, he's well known and respected in his small town and they come together to help out he and his 13 year old daughter, Cecilia after his wife passes away. He's always helped others when he could so now it's time for them to help him when he needs it most. However, what people don't know is his dark secret. He's killed 8 women and has another who has been kept prisoner in his shed for the last 5 years. Once he is forced to move, he agrees to take Rachel with him. He tells everyone she's a friend who was down on her luck and needed a place to stay for a bit. What everyone doesn't know is that she's still a prisoner. . . handcuffed to the bed or radiator in her room when he's not home. She's a fighter, though, and quickly becomes "friends" with his daughter, who can tell something is off. Told from Rachel, Cecilia and Emily's (his latest love interest) perspectives, we see what can happen behind closed doors, and that everyone is not always who they seem.

This story, in which a woman is imprisoned and hidden away for years in the home of a much-revered, supposedly upstanding husband and father, is quite engrossing.
There are several narrators, each with a compelling point of view that had me zipping through this audiobook.
Thanks to #netgalley and #knopfpublishinggroup for this #arc of #thequiettenant in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good thriller and kept me on the edge of my seat until the end. I don't particularly care for women being imprisoned and abused., but to be fair a lot of it was implied. I enjoyed it.

I loved this!!! I was pretty certain this would be great but no idea just how great it would be. I have read so many thrillers and horror and mystery novels but this was all those and electrocuted ten times over. I almost dnf'ed it because it's hard for me to deal with a slow plot but when it hit... man, did it hit. The character of Aiden will haunt me. The fact that he's so real and relatable and yet so evil... it's true to life and the poor victims... all I can say is go get this book now!

Special thanks to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage & Anchor books and NetGalley for an ARC of this debut novel.
Image the premise of a kidnapper keeping the kidnap victim in his residence as a tenant, the tension, the suspence. It was a great plot.
I did find it slow in spots, but other than that a great first novel.

This was very well written and I enjoyed it a lot! Brainwashing and manipulation at its finest. A haunting story of two women who are in the sights of a kidnapper and serial killer. One brave woman's fight for survival after years of being held captive. The other woman who doesn't know if yet, but she's flirting with danger, and could possibly be his next victim. The thing that prevented it from being a 5 star read in my opinion was the ending. It was missing some elements to give me the closure I was looking for.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC.

The Quiet Tenant by Clemence Michallon was a disturbing and dark read. It tells a story of Rachel, who has been abducted and held by Aidan for several years. He appears to be a normal man in a small town, and even is married and has a 13-year-old daughter named Cecilia. Emily , a local restaurant owner finds him very appealing and attractive. The story is told from these three woman’s point of views. Also, interspersed between these chapters are entries from different women that Aidan has killed previously. This book had a very claustrophobic feel but in a good way. I found myself rooting so hard for Rachel and feeling such sympathy for Emily. I found myself very apprehensive wondering how this could possibly end? Definitely read this book and you will not be disappointed. Thank you to NetGalley in the publisher for the advance copy of this book. All opinions on my own.